Active clinical trials for "Univentricular Heart"

Protein Losing Enteropathy (PLE) is a serious medical condition that may develop in children and adults with congenital heart disease for which a palliative procedure known as the "Fontan procedure" has been performed. The loss of serum proteins into the gastrointestinal tract that is associated with PLE can cause serious symptoms and life-threatening complications. A number of clinical studies have suggested that heparin administration can have clinical benefit in children with PLE, however the risk of bleeding associated with the administration of heparin is an important concern and commonly limits its administration. ODSH is a desulfated heparin with minimal anticoagulation properties but which, in pre-clinical studies, appears to have the potential to replace heparin and greatly reduce the risk of bleeding. This open label study is to assess the safety and evidence of therapeutic effect of the administration of ODSH as a 4-day continuous intravenous infusion in patients with an exacerbation of their PLE.

The purpose of this study is to test the efficacy of treprostinil (TRE) in the perioperative non-fenestrated, extracardiac Fontan patients in order to reduce duration of chest tube drainage (in days). The Fontan operation is performed for patients with single ventricle physiology as the final palliation to create a series circulation, with passive systemic venous return to the pulmonary arteries and the single ventricle solely providing systemic output. Patients undergoing extracardiac Fontan tend to have elevation of Fontan pressures immediately following the operation with inflammation from surgery requiring additional fluid administration to maintain blood pressure. Increased Fontan pressures and fluid overload lead to prolonged chest tube drainage. The hypothesis is that treprostinil, a prostacyclin drug that dilates the pulmonary arteries, will improve immediate postoperative Fontan pressures. Treprostinil is not FDA approved for this use. Anecdotally and in a small case series, prostacyclin therapy has been shown to assist in transitioning patients off nitric oxide. The investigators believe that this improvement in hemodynamics will decrease duration of chest tube drainage resulting in a shorter length of hospital stay.

Hypothesis: By blocking aldosterone signaling in patients with Tetralogy of Fallot, Transposition of the great vessels with a prior atrial switch, and single ventricle "Fontan" patients, incident heart failure will be delayed, symptoms of heart failure ameliorated, and risk of arrhythmias decreased through decreases in myocardial fibrosis. Half of enrolled patients will complete an SF-36 quality of life questionnaire, perform a 6 minute walk, and have blood drawn for biomarker analysis at enrollment, again after 3 months without therapy, after 6 months on therapy, then finally after 12 months of eplerenone therapy. Half of enrolled patients will have the 3 month drug free period at the end of 12 months on therapy. Patients will be randomly assigned to drug free period up front versus at the conclusion of the trial period. Eplerenone will be started at a dose of 25mg and titrated up to 50mg at 4 weeks if tolerated. Blood will be drawn for basic metabolic panel analysis at enrollment, 3 months, 4 months to allow for dose titration, and at 6 and 12 months for monitoring.

The investigators found that there is inflammation in the chest drainage in patients after the Fontan operation. The investigators want to test the theory that Colchicine, an anti- inflammatory medication, can decrease the inflammation in the chest tube drainage after the Fontan operation, and can decrease the amount of time that patients having this surgery will have drainage.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the efficacy of intracoronary infusion of cardiac progenitor cells in patients with univentricular heart disease. Patients with preoperative high-risk group or whose cardiac function did not recover postoperatively eventually have no choice other than heart transplantation.

The study will investigate the cardiovascular effects of sildenafil on patients with Fontan circulation. Recent studies suggest that sildenafil may improve exercise in patients with Fontan circulation. However, why this occurs is not known. The study will used specialized catheters to measure pressure and volume. The measure of pressure and volume leads to more detailed analysis of heart function. Patients will receive either sugar pill or sildenafil prior to catheterization. It is believed that sildenafil will improve relaxation and contraction of the heart.

Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) and related anomalies involved a single ventricle are characterized by hypoplasia of the left heart and the aorta with compromised systemic cardiac output. Infants with the syndrome generally undergo a staged surgical approach in view of an ultimate Fontan procedure. Although long-term survival in patients with HLHS and related single ventricle physiology has improved markedly with advances in medical and surgical therapies, a growing number of infants will ultimately require heart transplantation for end-stage heart failure due to several potential disadvantages include a negative effect on right ventricular function, arrhythmia, additional volume load via regurgitation from the nonvalved shunt, and impaired growth of the pulmonary artery. Risk factors for poor outcome of heart transplantation with HLHS and single ventricle physiology are older age at transplantation and previous Fontan operation. New strategies are needed to improve the underlying transplant risks proper for the Fontan failure patients. Emerging evidence suggests that heart-derived stem/progenitor cells can be used to improved cardiac function in patients with ischemic heart disease. In this trial, the investigators aimed to test the safety and feasibility of intracoronary injection of autologous cardiac progenitor cells in patients with HLHS and related single ventricle anomalies and that could improve ventricular function at 3 months' follow up.

Patients with single ventricle anatomy undergo staged surgical palliation. The result is an "in series" circulation with pulmonary blood flow and cardiac output directly related to pulmonary vascular resistance. While surgical outcomes have improved, the physiology of the single ventricle palliation results in continued long term attrition. Elevated pulmonary vascular resistance and impaired systemic ventricular function are important risk factors for failure of single ventricle palliation. Sildenafil is a pulmonary vasodilator and has been shown to improve cardiac contractility in the pressure overloaded right ventricle. The investigators will assess the safety, pharmacokinetics and hemodynamic efficacy of sildenafil in single ventricle patients following stage II and III surgical palliation.

Ultrasound is a technique that can provide images of the blood vessels such as arteries. The size of the arteries, such as the main blood vessel in the arm, can change under different conditions. Using ultrasound we can see how arteries change with movement or even drugs. We want to use ultrasound to see how blood vessels look in patients with Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) and to also see how a drug called Spironolactone, commonly prescribed for patients with this disease, effects blood vessel function in patients with congestive heart failure. This information may be used to change the standard of care for patients with heart failure especially if we show that Spironolactone has a positive effect on vessel function in patients with CHF.

This study evaluates the effect of carvedilol in patients who have undergone a Fontan heart operation. All participants will receive carvedilol and placebo for 12 weeks. Exercise tests will be performed at the end of each 12 week period.